That night, Mu Chen didn't sleep well.
He didn't have nightmares. He didn't wake up sweating. He just kept opening his eyes, listening to the base breathe.
Ventilation hum.
Footsteps far away.
A door closing.
A soft beep from some scanner.
Every sound reminded him of the same truth.
He was being measured.
In the morning, the team gathered in the ready room for the daily briefing. The big table screen lit up with a map. Red marks blinked in two places.
Colonel Luo Wei stood at the head of the table.
Mu Chen took his usual position at the edge.
Ye Fan stood closer to the center, arms crossed, eyes fixed on the screen like he was already in the mission.
Zhou Xiao leaned forward. Lin Lan held her tablet ready.
Luo Wei spoke. "Two gates opened overnight."
Mu Chen's attention sharpened.
Gates were never normal. Gates meant monsters, strange rules, and areas that didn't follow physics.
Luo Wei tapped the first red mark. "Gate One is low grade. Small. City edge. We'll send a standard team."
She tapped the second mark. "Gate Two is worse."
The screen zoomed in. The location tag showed a zone Mu Chen didn't recognize, but the color code around it was dark.
Forbidden.
Abandoned.
Luo Wei's voice stayed steady. "Gate Two opened inside an abandoned zone. We don't have full sensor access. The signal is dirty."
Zhou Xiao muttered, "That's a setup."
Luo Wei looked at him. "It could be. Or it could be chance. Either way, we clear it."
Ye Fan spoke. "What's the class?"
Luo Wei didn't answer right away. She glanced at Lin Lan.
Lin Lan read from her tablet. "Estimated B-grade gate. Possible higher. The base system can't confirm."
Mu Chen felt his throat tighten.
B-grade gate inside a forbidden zone meant unknown risk. It meant the monsters might not be the only danger.
Luo Wei continued. "Ye Fan leads Gate Two. Zhou Xiao and Lin Lan with him."
Ye Fan nodded once. No emotion.
Then Luo Wei's gaze moved to Mu Chen.
"Mu Chen," she said. "You go too."
The room went quiet.
Zhou Xiao's eyes widened slightly.
Lin Lan's fingers paused over her tablet.
Mu Chen kept his face calm. "Yes, ma'am."
Ye Fan's head turned. His eyes locked on Luo Wei. "He's a C-class guide."
Luo Wei held his gaze. "We need guide support. And the institute requested observation data."
Mu Chen's stomach dropped.
Requested.
The institute wasn't asking. It was deciding.
Ye Fan's voice came out colder. "We're not their lab."
Luo Wei's face stayed calm, but her eyes got sharper. "Major. You follow orders."
Ye Fan's jaw clenched.
Mu Chen watched the moment carefully.
A fight between a Major and a Colonel was not a normal fight. It was a fight with invisible knives. With politics. With who had the stronger leash.
Ye Fan looked away first.
Not because he agreed.
Because he had to.
"Yes, ma'am," Ye Fan said.
Luo Wei continued like nothing happened. "Rules for Gate Two. No unnecessary linking. Keep comms open. Lin Lan, you record everything."
Lin Lan nodded. "Yes, ma'am."
Mu Chen heard the unspoken part.
Record everything includes Mu Chen.
The briefing ended.
The team began to gear up.
Mu Chen went to his locker and started packing. Helmet. Gloves. Basic med kit. Water. A small pack of energy bars.
His hands stayed steady.
But he felt eyes.
Ye Fan walked up behind him.
Mu Chen didn't turn right away. He waited until Ye Fan spoke.
"Don't go in there thinking you can save everyone," Ye Fan said.
Mu Chen turned his head slightly. "I'm there to observe."
Ye Fan's eyes were hard. "That's what you keep saying."
Mu Chen held his gaze. "That's what I'll do."
Ye Fan stepped closer, lowering his voice. "Forbidden zones eat people. Not just bodies. Minds."
Mu Chen answered softly. "I know."
Ye Fan's eyes narrowed. "How?"
Mu Chen paused.
He couldn't say, I've been in worse rooms than your forbidden zones. He couldn't say, I've seen what systems do when they want to own you.
So he gave a simple answer. "I read."
Ye Fan stared like he didn't believe him.
Then Ye Fan spoke again, harsh and low. "If you break, I won't carry you."
Mu Chen's expression stayed calm. "I won't break."
Ye Fan's jaw tightened at that, like he wanted Mu Chen to admit fear.
Mu Chen didn't.
Ye Fan turned away sharply and walked toward the vehicle bay.
Mu Chen watched his back.
He understood Ye Fan better now.
Ye Fan didn't threaten him because Ye Fan hated him.
Ye Fan threatened him because Ye Fan was scared.
Not of monsters.
Of losing control in front of the institute.
Of being used again.
Mu Chen clipped on his headset and followed.
Cold lights above.
A gate waiting somewhere in a forbidden zone.
And a team walking into it with cameras on their helmets and a system watching every step.